he also provides some history on the relationship between the AMA and FDA.

American Medical Association Promoted Tobacco, Cigarettes in its Medical JournalBoth the AMA and individual doctors sided with big tobacco for decades after the deleterious effects of smoking were proven. Medical historians have tracked this relationship in great detail, examining internal documents from tobacco companies and their legal counsel and public relations advisers. The overarching theme of big tobacco's efforts was to keep alive the appearance of a "debate" or "controversy" of the health effects of cigarette smoking.

The first research to make a statistical correlation between cancer and smoking was published in 1930 in Cologne, Germany. In 1938, Dr. Raymond Pearl of Johns Hopkins University reported that smokers do not live as long as non-smokers. The tobacco industry dismissed these early findings as anecdotal -- but at the same time recruited doctors to endorse cigarettes.

I can't believe how long the PTB have been dancing around the fact that the chemicals they put in cigarettes will kill you. And if they don't kill you, they will harm your body in other ways that will require you to seek medical attention for other ailments. I'm sure many doctors can attribute a great deal of their income to treating the effects of smoking.....

I know a way to get people to quit smoking (I know I would) -- NO HEALTH CARE COVERAGE IF YOU'RE A SMOKER!!